Beveridge looks in-house to fill Norton void

SIDELINED: Hawks vice-captain Mitch Norton is facing six weeks on the sideline after having surgery on a broken thumb suffered in Monday's loss to Melbourne. Picture: AAP

ILLAWARRA coach Rob Beveridge has urged Indiana Faithful to take a leaf out of former Hawks bench weapon Jarrad Weeks’ book as he steps in for the injured Mitch Norton.

Norton had three pins inserted into the thumb he broke in the Hawks loss to Melbourne on Monday. He’s looking at six to eight weeks on the sideline, leaving Beveridge with a hole to fill in the back-court.

Former Kings guard Faithful has been with the Hawks as a development player since preseason and will be inserted into back-court rotation in Norton’s absence.

Now with Cairns, Weeks thrived in the same position with the Hawks two seasons ago, quickly becoming a fan favourite and proving his NBL credentials.

Beveridge is confident Faithful can do the same after a strong preseason.

“We’ll bring in Indiana, he’s been with the group since day one, he’s trained the whole off-season and he’s [already] here with us every day,” Beveridge said.

“His commitment to travel down from Sydney every single day has been amazing. He’s been the leader of the DP’s and the scout group and the most mature.

“He’s played in the NBL before and he’s improved out of sight. He ticked every single box we were looking for and we’re hoping this is an opportunity for him like we gave Jarrad Weeks.

“We’re saying ‘hey this is your time, don’t come in conservative, make the most of your minutes’.

“We’re hoping he does what Jarrad did and puts himself on the map because he’ll be playing minutes, he won’t be just making up the numbers.”